Imran Khan turns 74 behind bars as PTI marches for his release

Former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan turned 74 on Monday, with his birthday being marked amid his continued incarceration and renewed political tensions between his party and the government.

Khan, who rose from international cricket stardom to become Pakistan’s prime minister, has spent his 74th birthday behind bars, where he has remained since his imprisonment in 2023.

The occasion has taken on added political significance as PTI supporters have launched a march towards Islamabad demanding his release.

Thousands of party supporters began the long march from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where PTI remains in power, with party leaders calling on supporters to join the movement.

The protest stems from Khan's 2022 parliamentary ouster, which he attributes to the military, a claim the army denies. 

The protest was postponed from September 27 after failed negotiations with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government.

Talks collapsed as both sides accused each other of acting in bad faith, particularly over cooperation on a counter-terrorism plan in the militancy-hit Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region.

The government has deployed heavy security around Islamabad and declared that marchers will not be permitted to enter the city, with Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi vowing to end the protests decisively.

The situation remains tense, with the government considering legal steps against the PTI-led provincial government if it does not adhere to federal counter-terrorism measures.

Khan's political journey has been one of the most consequential in Pakistan's recent history. A former captain of Pakistan's 1992 World Cup-winning cricket team, he founded PTI in 1996 and spent years building the party before emerging as a major political force.

He became prime minister in 2018, but Parliament removed his government through a vote of no confidence in April 2022. His subsequent confrontation with the country's political and military establishment intensified, eventually leading to his arrest and a series of criminal cases.

Khan and PTI have repeatedly maintained that the cases against him are politically motivated.

Authorities have rejected those allegations and maintained that his legal troubles are being dealt with through the judicial process.

His imprisonment has nevertheless kept him at the centre of Pakistan's political debate. PTI-backed candidates secured significant support in the 2024 general election despite the restrictions faced by the party, while the party has continued to demand Khan's release.